men Can Wear Their Confidence, TOO!

If you’ve been following our blog posts for a while you’ve probably noticed a trend. Wear Your Confidence only addresses women! Confidence and self-love aren’t just women-centered trends, they’re for everyone! So today I want to talk to the guys out there about wearing their confidence and understanding the difference between cockiness and confidence because I’ve noticed that the two are often confused (at least in my personal experience, they are). I want to use two celebrities to illustrate my point and acknowledge the differences between being confident and being arrogant; Kanye West and Jaden Smith.
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For as long as he has been in the spotlight, Kanye West has been regarded as a very talented rapper and musician, but he has also been categorized as a cocky and arrogant celebrity based on the statements he makes about himself and the way he carries himself. I think it is important for men (just as women) to carry themselves with confidence and a sense of self assurance, but in my opinion, Kanye crosses that line. In the limelight, he believes himself to be God-like and often portrays himself as religious and spiritual figures. While many of his fans find his persona to be alluring and praise him for his actions, others could argue that Kanye possibly lacks humility and modesty. Of course, one has to take into account the fact that many celebrities behave a certain way in front of paparazzi and cameras for notoriety and are not, in fact, the way that Hollywood has made them out to be, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Kanye West truly thought of himself as a higher being than the rest of the world. No matter how talented you are, and obviously Kanye is talented, you are no better than anyone else and shouldn’t treat yourself or others as such.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have Jaden Smith who has recently been featured in the Louis Vuitton Women’s ad campaign. While this new addition to their campaign has received mixed reviews from consumers and non consumers alike, I personally think that it’s awesome that Jaden is confident enough to tear down gender norms and express himself in a way that he feels comfortable. There is no real rhyme or reason as to why most clothing has been designated “mens” or “womens” wear given that gender is socially constructed. With recent campaigns to deconstruct the gender norms surrounding toys, I am excited to see that clothing companies are following suit and taking baby steps to say, “Boo gender norms” and allowing people to confidently express who they are. If Jaden Smith can literally wear his confidence, so can other men! I’m not saying to go out and buy dresses necessarily, but do what makes you feel confident and feel like the best version of yourself!
I think that sometimes as a society we focus so much on building women’s confidence because women are most often victims of low self-esteem (due to society!), but there are definitely guys out there who could use a confidence boost. So if you’re a guy reading this, you, too, are beautiful and fearfully and wonderfully made. If you know a guy who struggles with self-love, encourage him! It won’t be a cure-all, but I can guarantee it’ll make him feel good about himself to hear that he is awesome and loved. Wear your confidence, guys!
 
Love always,
 
Gigi

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